Somewhere I Belong
by SuperAwesomePandaKitty
Summary: It's been three months since 6B (let's pretend Theo took Liam's pain) Theo's got his life somewhat together and finally reaches out to Liam. I'm terrible at summaries and I hope you enjoy :3 Ratings might change in chapter two
1. Chapter 1

It's been three months since the events with the Anuk-ite and the hunters fiasco. The people of Beacon Hills had started to rebuild their lives, there was no more hiding the supernatural but the fear was no longer there.

People remembered how Scott and his pack had been saving them over the years, their shame at hunting them made them avert their eyes for the first few weeks and the pack couldn't be more relieved.

But eventually as all things do the memories faded, not forgotten but less...

Eventually Melissa's house was being inundated with gift baskets, people trying to ask if maybe their kids were supernatural too when they began staying out late and how best to broach the subject with them. At first she was irritated with them for even daring to speak to her after how they treated her son and his friends but she thawed to the idea when she thought back on it.

Parrish still received the odd fearful look when he was on a callout but eventually he was receiving donations to his never-ending purchases of uniforms for when he became the hellhound.

The sheriff's phone was never off the hook at first for people panicking when a stray dog ran through their back gardens, or a dog howled, or anything making noise in the night.

Scott, Malia and Lydia had eventually moved on too, Malia had decided against going to France for now as it was just an excuse for her to run and see the world away from this place. She and Scott had managed to get an apartment close to his college while she went to the local community college, with financial help from Peter on the condition that they actually spend Father-Daughter time together at least once every two weeks.

Lydia and Stiles still Skyped each other but were also able to visit each other on the weekends, sending pictures of Stiles overdramatically crying as he hugged her while she looked up with fond exasperation into their group chat. They agreed that they all had to keep in touch through that; Scott making sure that Liam filled them in with an update each week.

Liam, Mason and Corey stayed behind to look after the town and finish their Senior Year. The bitch of a teacher and any other person of authority that were complacent in Liam's beating were fired. Thankfully nothing else really big had happened and they were able to actually concentrate on being normal teenagers for a while.

Liam's parents found out he was a werewolf obviously, his mother couldn't look at him for a week but his stepdad seemed to take it well and asked him questions about the shift and how he became one.

And Theo?

Well Theo managed to get a place (finally). It wasn't much; chipped paint on the walls and a constant chill in the air but it was better than sleeping in his car. He had a bed and a roof over his head; he didn't really need anything else. He was repeating his senior year at school due to his 'illness' and thankfully no one had heard about his Chimera status as Theo much preferred to keep that to himself. Not trusting this kind of acceptance that was happening in the town.

He spent a lot of his free time in the local bookstore _after_ and after seeing him there for two weeks straight, reading in the corner; Gladys had put him to work. Gladys ran the bookstore after her husband died but she wasn't well enough to be looking after it all the time and they didn't have any children so when she saw the Raeken boy reading in her store everyday she offered him the job on the condition that he would finish his school year.

"If you're going to be reading my books for free then you may as well make yourself useful." She scolded him and he looked at her awkwardly, eyes darting to the door as he subtly moved closer towards it. "Stop right there young man." She added and he froze.

"Sorry..." He murmured, hoping to get the hell out of there as quick as possible and get back to his car.

"I'm not, so are you going to help me or not?" The woman asked with her hands on her hips, like she wouldn't accept any answer but yes.

"S-sure." Theo said with wary eyes and wondering what the hell the lady wanted from him.

"Good." She said, shoulders relaxing a little. "Now I'm willing to let you read whenever you want but you have to at least dust in here once in a while, I'm not fit to be doing it myself anymore you know? You have to serve customers too, I'll show you how to work the tills once or twice but after that you're on your own." She said not unkindly and Theo looked up at her in surprise.

"I could rob you y'know? You shouldn't just be offering random strangers jobs here and there." Theo told her a little sarcastically.

"I may be old Theo but I'm not green." Gladys remarked with a knowing smirk when he looked up in surprise that she knew his name. "Yes I know who you are, and words been getting around that you're homeless boy. My friend's daughter works for the police and she's caught you a few times in your car."

Theo looked down, barely keeping the shame from his face and he didn't really know what to say for himself.

"Now, I have a friend who has an apartment a few blocks from here, it's not much; about fifty bucks a week. I'll be paying you $250 a week as long as you do a good job and you finish your school." She announced, waiting patiently for him to respond as he looked at her incredulously.

No one's ever given him a chance like this. The dread doctors tainted his innocence, his childhood robbed from him. His sister... He didn't deserve any of this but he wanted to prove to himself that he could do this. _Live a normal life_ or as close to normal he could get.

"Why?" Theo asked her when she let out an impatient sigh. "I could do anything, why are you helping me?"

"Why not?" Gladys asked, almost sounding offended. "Sometimes it pays to have blind faith Theo. If you really didn't want the job, if you could really do anything, rob me even or destroy the place...you would have done it by now or even left." A knowing smile graced her lips. "Maybe you should have blind faith too, not everyone's out to get you boy."

He met her eye then, weighing his options. This could be a total trap...but she genuinely seemed like she wanted to help and he was kind of desperate. The others didn't really know about his homelessness, though he didn't even know if he _would_ tell them if they asked and he could always run if this turned out bad.

Running was a gift that he had but hadn't utilised since Liam raised him from hell...He couldn't allow himself to dwell on the why, he just knew that he cared. After failing to heal Mason...when Liam had got himself hurt at the hospital and Theo had dropped to his knees beside him. He gripped Liam's arm and the black veins of pain flowed from the werewolf into him.

Theo had never felt anything like it before, it didn't hurt that much but it was like he could _feel_ Liam's relief at not being in pain anymore...Theo hadn't been avoiding him since then per say, more like he'd be there for the group meetings before quickly moving off before Liam could catch him in a one-way conversation.

"Okay." He answered, shrugging like he had nothing to lose... _which is literally true_ , he thought with a sigh.

"Good, you can start tomorrow. Give me your mobile number and I'll ring you this evening about that apartment, your first month's rent is on me so you can work to save the rest of it from your pay-cheque each week." Gladys said with a warm grin, happy she'd got her way and Theo rolled his eyes a little when he could see the smug glint in her eyes.

"Thank you." He replied genuinely after writing his mobile number down. "What's your name by the way?" Theo asked curiously.

"You're very welcome and the name's Gladys, Monroe is my surname obviously." She explained as she pointed to the logo of ' _Monroe's Bookstore_ '.

It's been two and a half months since then and Theo had actually managed to keep his head down. Finishing his schoolwork on time, avoiding Liam and the pack, working at the bookstore, avoiding even thinking about Liam, cleaning his apartment, and did he mention avoiding Liam?

Liam had been trying to catch the slippery Chimera to talk to him and he'd tried everything short of calling him out on it in the middle of class. Theo felt bad as Liam at first was just pissed off that the older one was avoiding him but now he just smelt hurt.

Theo sighed dejectedly when he noticed the wolf trying to catch his eye with the expression of a kicked puppy, allowing their eyes to meet from across the room for the first time in months and Liam's lips parted in surprise.

"Later, I promise." He murmured so only Liam could hear him and the younger one nodded eagerly before turning his attention back to the teacher with a little relieved smile and Theo let his eyes linger a little longer.

When the bell rang to signal the end of the day Theo waited in his seat instead of darting out like he normally would, he knew Gladys wouldn't mind if he was a wee bit late since he was always too early and she had sassed him for having no friends.

Liam waited as well, slowly making his way over to the chimera when the room was empty.

"Hey Theo." He mumbled nervously, avoiding the older one's eyes as he picked at a loose thread on the sleeve of his shirt.

"I'm sorry." Was the only thing he could think to say, the chemosignals of hurt and anxiety permeated the air and he smiled reassuringly when Liam finally met his eyes.

"You're sorry? For showing up and saving my life, taking my pain, fighting alongside us and then disappearing into the wind like it was nothing?" Liam asked a little angry and Theo got it.

"I was homeless Liam...I had to sort myself out first." Theo burst out before shrugging slightly and averting his eyes when he heard the sharp intake of breath. "And yeah, I was avoiding you a bit."

"What the hell?!" Liam exclaimed, waving his hands worriedly. "You didn't think to tell us?"

"Of course not." Theo snapped. "You think anyone would want to help me after what I did?" He added, getting up from his seat and packing up his books. He was running late but he didn't want to blow Liam off, he wanted to be honest with the werewolf and honestly, he had missed him.

"I would have helped you." Liam said softly and Theo's head snapped up to look at him. "You saved my life how many times now? Of course I would have helped you...but no you decided to run away. You're such an asshole." He said bitterly, turning to leave with a wounded look.

"So that's it?" Theo asked him warily. "I finally stop running and now you're going to run?" Honestly he deserved that but part of him couldn't help but feel hurt by it.

Liam stopped by the door, he wanted to hate Theo but he couldn't. Not after the Chimera had done nothing but try to save him, from himself and others. He turned then, eyes hesitantly meeting Theo's. "I hate you." He said, neither commenting on the tick of his heart for the lie. "I'm so pissed at you."

"I know." Theo said with a knowing smirk. "I hate you too." Allowing the tick in his heart to be heard by the younger boy and the corners of the wolf's lips tugged upwards as their gazes lingered. He walked towards the boy then, and Liam's breathing hitched as he got closer.

"Theo." Liam said quietly. Theo didn't respond, he only walked closer and pulled the younger wolf into his arms for a hug. Liam buried his head in the Chimera's neck and breathed in his scent, hands grasping at the back of his jacket to pull him closer.

"I can't breathe Liam." Theo huffed quietly and Liam backed off quickly but the chimera placed a gentle hand on his shoulder with a reassuring smile. "I promise I'm not running anymore...but I _am_ late for work and Gladys will kill me if I don't hurry up so you can either come with me or text me later." He offered, smirking when Liam's eyes widened.

"You have a job?!" He asked incredulously.

"Yep...at a bookstore." Theo replied, biting his lip to hide his grin.

"You know how to read?!" Liam exclaimed with a smirk, their familiar banter settling in around them like a comforting blanket.

"Well you look like you're feeling better." Theo deadpanned with an eyeroll as he moved past the younger wolf and headed down the corridor.

"Wait." Liam said, running to catch up with him. "So you're okay now? Not homeless or anything?"

"I'm good." He replied reassuringly. The chimera opened the front doors to the school, holding one open for Liam and walked towards his car. "You coming?" He asked sensing the other wolf's hesitance to ask but also not leaving his side.

"Yeah, just want to make sure you're safe. I _am_ supposed to be the Alpha when Scott's not here." Liam responded, the second part an unconvincing excuse as they got into Theo's car.

"I'm not pack so you don't need to but thanks I guess." Theo said, he wasn't throwing it back in Liam's face but he was just trying to let him know that he had no obligation to make sure Theo was okay.

"You are." Liam replied angrily. "Scott already acknowledged what you did for us back there, you were part of the pack before we even realised it. Granted we argued with you but you were part of the pack all the same." Theo looked at him in surprise before turning his eyes back onto the road so he wouldn't crash.

He stayed silent as he looked at the clock every so often, he was ten minutes late for work now and this was the first time he'd be late. His phone began vibrating and he quickly rummaged around his pocket to answer it and put it on speaker so he couldn't give the cops an excuse to pull him over.

"Theo, where the hell are you? Mrs Kelly is here and she's whining in my ear about not seeing her favourite worker." Gladys complained in a harsh whisper, Liam's eyes widened and a smirk grew on his face as Theo's flushed.

"Sorry I got held up at school and there's traffic, I'm literally around the corner now and I'll be there in five minutes." He hurried to explain to her.

"Yeah well hurry up, I'm about to pull my hair out if she doesn't leave and you're always so good at derailing her from her rants about her kids." The lady muttered bitterly. Theo pulled up in front of the store and parked his car in the space reserved for staff.

"Yeah yeah I'm here already calm down." He snarked as both he and Liam unbuckled their seatbelts.

"Don't you sass me boy." She sassed and Liam couldn't help but let out a snicker as they walked into the store.

"Mrs Kelly." Theo exclaimed with a polite smile on his face as he hung up on Gladys and put his phone in his pocket. "How are you today?" Liam looked at him with wide eyes, wondering who the hell this imposter was.

"Theo! Darling!" An old woman with a posh English accent greeted him in delight. "Oh it's been awful darling, Gemma and her girlfriend came over this morning and her girlfriend stood on my cat! Almost broke his tail the poor baby."

"Aw no, I'm sure it was an accident." He replied sympathetically as he gently accepted the books she had in her hands and walked around the counter to scan them.

"No I don't think so darling, she's always hated him. I know she has, ever since he threw up on her shoes two years ago." She lamented and Theo just shook his head fondly at her.

"That's twelve dollars Mrs Kelly but for you I'll make it ten." He said with a warm grin pulling two dollars out of his back pocket so Gladys would still make the money for them.

"Thank you darling, that's ever so kind of you." She replied with a flustered smile as she handed him the money and he handed her the books.

"Don't mention it." Theo said and waved at her when she left.

"Thank god for that." Gladys said as she came out of the back. "Dreadful woman, can never get rid of her."

"She's not that bad, I think she's just lonely." He told the woman with a smirk before Liam coughed to remind the Chimera of his presence.

"Oh hello there dear, are you a friend of Theo's? I was beginning to think he didn't have any." Gladys greeted the younger wolf.

"Heh yeah, I'm Liam." Liam answered awkwardly. "So I'll..uh...catch up with you later Theo." He added to the older boy.

"Later Liam." He replied with a smile, watching the younger boy walk out before busying himself with his book.

"He seems nice." Gladys commented with a raised brow.

"Yeah, he's my friend from school." He said distractedly as he tried to focus on the words in front of him instead of the lilt in her voice.

"Didn't you used to hang around with the Dunbar boy before the school year?" She asked with a knowing look.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." He responded, the tips of his ears burning as he knew that people had suspected Liam of being a werewolf and he didn't know if she knew about that and how she would feel about him being a Chimera.

"I'm sure you don't" She hummed sarcastically. "Anyway, I must be off. Betty and I are going to the movies today so remember it's your turn to lock up."

"It's always my turn." Theo said absently without raising his eyes from his book.

"Well that's what I'm paying you for isn't it?" She sassed in lieu of a goodbye as she grabbed her coat and headed out to meet her friend.

Theo smirked fondly before finishing his page and placing his bookmark in the book. He was allowed to read them as long as he didn't damage them so they could still be sold and he pulled out his homework.

Business was slow today, only a few customers; some young, some old. When it was closing time, he cleaned up a bit, locked the money in the safe and locked the door before getting into his car and heading home.

It was when he was outside his apartment that he picked up the scent in the back of his car.

"You know it's rude to spy on people right?" Theo snarked at the other chimera. Corey appeared then with a worried expression.

"Sorry, I was just worried about you." Corey responded nervously.

"Did Liam put you up to this?" He sighed tiredly.

"No, I came here by myself. I already knew that you worked in the bookstore; my mom told me." He said, exiting the car when Theo got out and held the door open for him.

"Well you have nothing to worry about. I'm fine." He said reassuringly.

"You don't get it do you? You just upped and left without a word." Corey informed the older chimera.

"I didn't leave...I just avoided everything for a bit." He replied warily.

"Three months Theo." The younger chimera insisted.

"I was at school wasn't I? It's not like I skipped town." He defended himself quietly.

"And avoiding Liam like the plague wasn't 'leaving'." Corey said with a raised brow.

"I don't need to explain myself to you." Theo snapped; causing the other boy to jump and the older chimera froze. "Look." He added with a defeated sigh. "I've already spoken to Liam today, everything's fine now and I'm not going anywhere...Sorry for snapping at you."

"I get it but just don't push us away, you wanted to be pack and now you have one. So don't throw that away. Check in every now and again; let us know you're alive at least." The young chimera told him with a determined expression.

"Okay." Theo said with a nod. He pulled his phone out of his pocket to let Liam know he was out of work if he wanted to meet up and he smiled up at the younger boy. "Fine, you can come in if you want." He added when he noticed him hovering.

"Okay good, we need to talk." He responded quickly.

"We weren't just talking there now?" Theo asked rhetorically as he unlocked his apartment door and let the other boy go first. "It's not much but it's enough." He added modestly when he noticed Corey staring at anything and everything in his apartment.

"Honestly, it's better than I thought it would be." Corey replied before wincing at his own words. "Sorry that's not what I meant."

"What, you thought I would live in a fortress surrounded by a lava moat?" He asked with a smirk but Corey shook his head.

"I was worried you'd be homeless if we're being honest." He said nervously.

"I was." Theo informed him and averted his eyes when he saw the pity in the other boy's face. "I'm fine now though." _Thanks to Gladys giving him a chance_.

"I'm sorry Theo." Corey murmured.

"Don't be. Brought it on myself." He said honestly.

The conversation lulled there as Theo received a message from Liam wanting to know his address, which he texted to him and informed him of the other chimera's presence.

"Liam's on his way over, what do you want to talk to me about?" He explained as he gestured for the chimera to sit down.

"Well, we think there's a group of hunters that are coming to finish the job they started a few months ago. They're not exactly happy that people know about werewolves and stuff." Corey informed the older one.

"Okay." Theo said as he waited for the other boy to continue but Corey was just looking down nervously at his hands. "Corey, what is it? What do you need me to do?"

"Well it's not really me; it's Scott, which you would know if you bothered to check in with the pack group chat."

"I didn't know I was invited." Theo ground out guiltily. "Fine, what does Scott want me to do?"

"Not many people in this town know about you..." Corey trailed off.

"Spit it out." He said tiredly.

"We need you to go to a bar on the outskirts of town, you're the only one who looks old enough and we're the only ones that can get through the mountain ash." Corey said in a rush, his anxiety levels through the roof as he thought Theo would be pissed at being asked to do something as dangerous as this when he was just getting back into the pack.

"And do what?!" Theo asked incredulously.

"Get info." Corey explained.

"Get Argent to do it, he's an actual hunter." The older chimera said with a huff.

"We can't, they know he helped Scott." The young chimera explained like that should have been obvious, which Theo supposed it should have. He sighed again.

"Fine, when?" Pulling out his phone again when he felt the buzzing in his pocket announcing Liam's arrival.

"Tonight...As soon as possible." He answered, looking nervously at the door when Theo opened it to a pissed off Liam.

"You told him?!" Liam growled.

"You weren't going to! It's the best option we have and you know it!" He replied angrily and Theo just looked between the two awkwardly.

"I told you we didn't need to do that. We could find someone else." Liam ground out like they had had this conversation a million times which always went the same way. "I can't believe you went behind my back like this...No wait, I can! You're always sneaking around, I told Mason that I would work with you if you'd cut this shit out but you just can't help yourself can you?" His eyes began to glow as his voice came out in more growls than actual words.

"Liam, calm down." Theo said, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder and he couldn't help but feel proud when Liam instantly calmed and his eyes found the older Chimera's.

"I'm sorry Liam." Corey murmured as he all but ran out the door with a hurt look.

"If it helps, I said yes." Theo informed the younger wolf.

"No it doesn't." Liam sighed dejectedly as he sat down on the couch.

"Why are you so against this?" He asked with a confused frown.

"Because Scott needs someone to do this, anyone who isn't associated with the pack so it can't be traced back and they can't be hurt. You've been seen with us before and Corey's too much of a coward to do it himself." He growled out.

"Have you seen his face? He'd be kicked out for being underage a mile off." Theo joked, nudging Liam a little to get him to smile and it worked.

"Just...be careful. Please." Liam begged. "These hunters are willing to do anything, if they think you're working with us; human or not, they'll kill you." He bit his lip nervously and his heart rate was reaching dangerous levels for a panic attack.

"I'll be fine Liam, if something happens I'll call." Theo reassured the younger wolf, putting his arm around his shoulders and pulling him into his side to comfort him.

"I don't like this, at all." The werewolf said, nuzzling his head in Theo's shoulder before pulling back. "You call as soon as you're out of there." He added with raised brows.

"I promise." The chimera said with a nod, he stood up then and looked around for anything he might need. "Just tell me what I need to do and then I'll go."

"We just need to know what they're planning, who they know about and when they're going to do it. You don't even need to talk to anyone, just go in and get a drink and use your hearing." Liam explained worriedly. "Actually I would prefer if you didn't talk; you have a bad habit of pissing hunters off."

"That's not fair, I piss everyone off." Theo replied with a smirk.

"That's not the point." Liam said as he tried to repress a smile.

"Let's just get this over with." The Chimera said, rolling his shoulders and taking a deep breath.

Liam nodded worriedly as he followed Theo out the door, he gave the older boy the directions to the bar and watched worriedly as he got into his car and drove away.

Theo shook his head warily, was he really ready to do this? He was just getting back into the swing of things and he didn't want to fuck it up.

He parked his car and got out, looking up at the bar which seemed to be packed with people. He took a deep breath and sauntered into the bar confidently. He could feel the mountain ash in the air as he walked through the doors and he was thankful for his Chimera status.

Conversations stuttered as some of the patrons looked at the newcomer before going back to what they were saying and Theo avoided eye contact with anyone other than the bar man.

"What are you havin'?" The bartender asked, wiping an empty glass with a dishcloth.

"I'll just have a beer." Theo responded with a small smile, paying for his drink before moving off to sit in the back of the room on his own.

" _So there he is right? Crying for his mama, half wolfed out and like ten arrows sticking out of him. I used the shotgun on him; it's hard to heal a shotgun blast to the face_." Howls of laughter followed the story and Theo tried to suppress a wince as he took another sip of his beer and played with his phone nervously.

" _Did you hear about Anto? They say he was murdered by an animal, stupid cops don't know what they're dealin' with_."

" _Baby can we go back to my place, I'm bored of this dump_."

" _It's going down soon. Lost my cousin a few months ago_..." Theo tried to focus his hearing on that particular stream of conversation but was quickly interrupted when a bearded biker-type sat in front of him.

"Hey there friend." He greeted cheerfully.

"Uh, Hey." Theo replied with a friendly smile.

"I'm Sam, over there is my girlfriend Julia." He pointed over to a woman playing pool, she winked at her boyfriend before potting the eight ball and winning the game. "Proud of you baby." He let out a whoop when the man she'd been playing begrudgingly handed her fifty bucks.

"Name's Josh." The Chimera lied easily, a friendly smile on his face but he was nervous as hell in a bar full of hunters.

"Nice to meet ya Josh, lemme buy you another beer." Sam said, heartbeat steady and Theo relaxed somewhat.

"Sure." He replied with a friendly shrug.

Sam nodded and turned to Julia. "Baby, get us two beers and whatever you want for yourself." He called to her, she nodded and walked up to the barman conversationally. Theo tried to watch for a bit but Sam quickly pulled his attention back on him. "So, what're you doing here all by yourself?"

"Had an argument with my dad, needed to get out of the house for a bit" Theo answered with a sad expression on his face.

"I get it, me and ma old man never really got on much either." Sam said sympathetically, he had a bit of a southern twang to his accent and he smiled lovingly to Julia when she sauntered over with their drinks.

"Hey there." Julia greeted, same southern twang in her voice as she sat down on Sam's knee.

"Hey, thanks for the drink." Theo said gratefully, he could smell the wolvesbane coming from the glass but he didn't let it show on his face. Wolvesbane could still affect him but not as easily as a normal werewolf so he would just have to drink slow. He took a confident sip and he could see their shoulders relax a little as they watched.

"So Josh, you ever go huntin'?" Sam asked him as he took a sip of his own beer.

"I used to with my dad; we hunted deer, a pheasant or two when we could." He responded with a nostalgic smile on his face as he stared down at his glass before taking another careful sip.

"You never hunt anything bigger? Like a wolf." Julia asked curiously and Theo shook his head.

"Nah, we haven't been in this town long but when we were back in my hometown we used to do it every hunting season." Theo heard the tick in their heartbeats, they'd caught him out in a lie but he never let on and neither did they.

" _It's going down next Thursday, we got someone on Argent and we're taking everyone we can. Those who would try to protect 'em too._ "

"Well this has been great, thanks you really cheered me up after my fight with my dad. Let me buy you both a drink to repay you." The Chimera said smoothly, reluctantly downing the rest of his wolvesbane-laced drink and raising his hand to the barman. He ordered their drinks and quickly took his money out of his wallet to pay for them before saying his goodbyes and walking out of the bar.

He walked to his truck; running would just make it worse. He could hear them talk about him inside and he knew he was screwed. Liam was right, he should have kept his mouth shut but what was he supposed to do? He was perfectly fine sitting by himself.

"Hey Josh." He heard from behind, he tried to squash the panic down as he turned with a polite smile but froze when he saw the gun. "Tell Argent we send our regards." Sam said as he shot Theo in the abdomen five times.

Theo fell backwards and groaned, trying desperately to hold back the shift as the pain made him want to wolf out and howl but he knew that that wouldn't be the best thing to do in front of a bar full of hunters. Julia straddled his chest and he let out a loud shout as she pressed down on one of his wounds.

"Now now, calm down." She trilled as she lightly kissed the tip of his nose. "Wouldn't want you to die too quickly now." She giggled as she reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his phone. "Well that's disappointing." She sighed when she saw that a bullet had cracked the screen and she tossed it to the side.

The Chimera let his eyes drift shut, blood pouring from his wounds and he controlled his heartbeat to be slow. He felt her reach into his pocket again and she took his car keys before getting off of him and skipping to her boyfriend.

"I got us a free ride baby!" Julia giggled to Sam and Theo barely managed to suppress a growl.

"Nice, we need to get out of here though; if the cops come it'll look bad when they see a dead underage kid." Sam told her, he alerted everyone else in the bar and they all scattered. Theo kept his eyes closed, barely able to keep himself from coughing black blood everywhere as the bullets were laced with wolvesbane too.

He waited another ten minutes after everyone was gone before he chanced opening up his eyes, he gasped in painful breaths as he couldn't control his breathing anymore and he rolled over onto his stomach with a groan.

"Fuck." He said as he tried to push himself up to a stand and staggered forward. Liam was going to kill him, he had no phone and he didn't want to panic the entire town with a howl.

It took him almost over an hour just to get to Deaton's, between walking, stumbling to the ground and dragging himself along the road when he couldn't walk anymore. He was feeling weaker by the minute and he noted with a gasping sigh that the veterinarian's car-park was empty.

He tried the door just to see if by some chance it would be open and when it was predictably locked he finally allowed himself to howl. It was a weak desperate thing even to his own ears and his legs gave out. He knew he was going to pass out soon and he'd rather not do it in front of the Vets so he dragged himself around the back. He had shifted about twenty minutes ago and didn't have enough strength to pull the wolf back.

He pulled himself in between a wall and the dumpster before coughing out a lot of black blood onto the ground. He took a deep shuddering breath then, using the last of his strength to let out a long painful howl hoping and praying someone could hear him before collapsing onto the puddle of blood unconscious.

Liam awoke when he heard something, disoriented he reached blindly for his phone on the nightstand and he growled when he noticed that he had heard nothing from Theo yet. It was after twelve now and Theo should have checked in by now.

He'd probably headed home and decided to leave the wolf hanging until the morning. Liam sighed angrily, throwing the phone back onto the nightstand before slumping into his pillow again to try to go back to sleep.

He shot up in bed when he heard the howl. He'd recognise that howl anywhere and he threw the covers off himself as he ran around his room to throw on some clothes. He didn't want to wake his parents so he opened his bedroom window quietly after throwing on his hoodie and pocketed his phone.

Jumping and rolling to break his fall on his front lawn, he pulled his hood up and wolfed out. Howling back to let Theo know he'd heard him as he ran, instinct pulling him towards the source of the sound as he ran.

He skidded to a stop near Deaton's when he saw the blood trail on the road and he desperately looked around for Theo's car. He tried to calm his breathing so he could focus his hearing for any heartbeats in the area, there was only one other than his and it sounded faint to his ears.

"Theo?!" Liam called out but received no response and he followed the scent of Theo, blood and wolvesbane. "Theo!" He shouted worriedly when he found the wolfed out Chimera in a pool of his own blood, before he even knew it he had his phone out in his hand dialling Deaton's number and he was kneeling in front of the older boy.

"Hello?" Deaton asked tiredly, Liam put him on loudspeaker and set the phone down on the ground as he reached towards Theo with shaky hands.

"Deaton, Theo's been hurt bad. I heard him howling and found him passed out and wolfed out behind your clinic." The younger wolf informed him in a panic, stroking the hair out of Theo's eyes.

"Okay Liam, don't panic. There's a key for the back door under the concrete step, get him on the table and try to wake him up. I'm on my way." Deaton ordered urgently, shuffling noises could be heard in the background as he got ready to leave.

"Okay...please hurry." Liam replied anxiously before hanging up. He gently lifted Theo into his arms and carried him to the clinic. Looking around for the loose concrete took a little longer than he would have liked, especially with Theo's dead...unconscious weight in his arms.

Once he found the key, he hurried into the clinic and set Theo gently down on the metal table.

"Theo." He called softly, lightly slapping his furred cheek. "Theo! Wake up!" Liam shouted louder, his heart rate was getting weaker but at least he was still breathing and the younger wolf stroked the Chimera's face worriedly. "Come on Theo, please." He begged, he hesitated when the he curled his hand into a fist but he knew it was the only way.

"WAKE UP!" He shouted as he punched Theo in the face. Theo's golden eyes opened and he shot up with a panicked howl and Liam gripped both sides of his face to get the Chimera to focus on him. "Theo, it's me!" He said soothingly as he could smell the older boy's anxiety.

"How'd you find me?" Theo asked before coughing out more black blood and Liam nervously wiped his lips with a tissue as the Chimera collapsed back on the table.

"You howled remember? I heard you, I found you..." Liam trailed off with a shrug, avoiding the older one's glossy gaze. "What happened to you? I can smell the wolvesbane but normally it doesn't affect you this much."

"Drank a beer laced with it, got shot, dragged my ass here." He replied drowsily, eyes heavy and drifting shut.

"No! You need to stay awake okay?!" The younger werewolf shouted desperately, hand stroking through Theo's hair.

"I'm tired..."Theo murmured before turning to his side to cough out more blood.

"I know but please, Deaton's on his way." He replied worriedly, wiping the substance away and taking Theo's pain.

Deaton arrived then, rushing around as he grabbed various vials and equipment. "So what happened?"

"He had wolvesbane in his drink and was shot a few times, I'm guessing the bullets had wolvesbane on them as well, I can smell it." Liam answered urgently.

Deaton rushed over, already reaching for his tweezers to pull the bullets out of the chimera's stomach. "This isn't going to be pleasant." He warned Theo and the other boy nodded.

"Just do it." He said after a weak breath. Liam held Theo's hand; taking any pain that he felt when Deaton pulled the bullets out. "Liam...my phone...it got shot." The chimera mumbled weakly to the wolf and Liam squeezed his hand in response.

"It's okay, I'm just glad you howled and I made it in time." The younger boy replied worriedly.

Deaton managed to get all the bullets out and applied some treatment to help the chimera heal faster before placing some gauze to the wounds.

"That's the best I can do for now, the rest is up to your healing abilities. As you are a chimera the wolvesbane won't affect you as strongly however, you did ingest it so your healing will be slower." Theo nodded gratefully, Liam helped ease him up to a sit and he gave the younger werewolf a soft smile.

"Thanks Deaton." The chimera said, he turned then letting his legs dangle over the edge of the table before easing himself onto the floor.

"Easy." Liam told him, pulling his arm over his shoulder to help him walk. "Where's your truck anyway? I didn't see it in the car park."

"They took it." Theo growled out. "I had to let them do it; they think I'm human and working for Argent."

"You talked didn't you?" Liam snarked as he helped him out of Deaton's, the veterinarian watching them with a fond look.

"Like I had a choice, I sat in the back minding my own business and these two people bought me the drink and tried to talk to me. It's not like I could tell them to fuck off when I was trying to be low key." Theo sassed back as they made the long trek back to his apartment.

"You could have been killed; I knew this was a terrible idea." The younger wolf said guiltily.

"Hey, this wasn't your fault. I agreed to it." Theo said reassuringly, he could already feel himself healing so he didn't think it was too much of a big deal. He'd long since gotten over his fear of death.

"I shouldn't have let you go, I should have stopped Corey." Liam replied angrily, pulling the Chimera closer to him, heartbeat elevated as he panicked internally about how close he was to losing the older boy.

"Liam, calm down. I'm okay, this isn't Corey's fault. It was the only plan you guys had and besides it's not like the plan was a total bust or anything." The Chimera informed the younger boy.

"What do you mean? You almost died; I'd say that was a bust." Liam retorted bitterly.

"I survived didn't I? And they're moving next Thursday, someone's following Argent and they plan to kill anyone who sympathises." Theo said with a smug smirk when Liam looked up at him in awe.

"That's the first solid piece of information we've had in weeks." Liam murmured as they neared Theo's street.

"You're welcome." Theo huffed out as he struggled to get his keys out of his jacket pocket. "Thanks for coming for me." He added softly as they stopped in front of his door.

"Anytime." Liam replied genuinely, a small but worried smile on his face as he eased the other boy's arm from his shoulder.

Both boys stood there awkwardly for a few moments, neither wanting to talk first but neither willing to walk away.

In the end they both broke first.

"I should probably g-"

"Do you want to co-"

"You want me to come in?" Liam asked a little too eagerly.

"Sure." Theo replied with a smile as he unlocked the door and walked in with some difficulty. They both sat down on the couch beside each other, silence comfortable between them but only a tad tense as neither boy knew what to say.

"You scared me." The younger wolf murmured.

"I'm sorry." Theo whispered reaching out to pull Liam into his side like they were earlier and the younger boy carefully leaned into his side as he tried to avoid the Chimera's wounds. "Can't believe they took my car." He growled lightly.

"Be glad that's all they did, they could have made sure you were dead." Liam replied, pulling back to give the older boy a soft look.

"Suppose that's true." Theo agreed, meeting the younger wolf's eyes with a warm smile on his face.

They gazed at each other again, nervous tension in the air but eyes light. Neither knew who was leaning in first, just that they were getting closer; eyes glancing at the other's lips just for a moment. Theo's hand sliding down Liam's back, Liam's hand brushing against the older boy's neck and they could feel the other's nervous breath on their faces.

They jumped apart when Liam's phone began buzzing and he rushed to reach into his pocket to lift out his phone. Both boys refusing to look at each other as Liam stood up to answer.

"Hello?" Liam asked anxiously, he'd been too hasty to answer the phone to see the Caller ID.

"Liam, are you okay?" Mason asked him worriedly and the werewolf's shoulders slumped in relief.

"Yeah, I'm fine why?" Liam replied curiously.

"Corey said he heard howling but his hearing isn't as good as yours." Mason said quickly, demanding information from his best friend.

"Theo got hurt but I got him to Deaton in time." The werewolf informed his best friend, rolling his eyes when Theo hissed at him for telling them.

"Shit is he okay?!" Mason asked worriedly, Corey was murmuring in the background and Mason was hushing him lightly.

"I'm fine." Theo called out so that the couple would stop worrying.

"Theo's with you?" Mason questioned in a relieved tone.

"Yeah, and he's okay honestly. I was worried he wasn't gonna make it at first though." Liam responded.

"Liam's being a drama queen, it wasn't that bad." Theo shouted to the phone while giving the werewolf a look.

Liam growled slightly, holding his hand over the mouthpiece of the phone to muffle the sound as he glared at the older boy. Theo just raised his brow in challenge and Liam was five minutes away from howling in frustration.

"Well since _I'm_ being the drama queen I guess I'll go home." Liam said angrily and headed out of the apartment.

"Liam!" Theo called but couldn't manage to stand up in time as he was still healing.

"Did you seriously just walk out of there?!" His best friend chastised him.

"He was pissing me off; he doesn't give a shit about anything." The other teen let out bitterly.

"Jeez Liam I can't believe I'm gonna side with Theo but you are being a bit of a drama queen right now." Mason muttered.

"You don't get it! He was so close to dying, I found him wolfed out and passed out in a pool of his own blood." Liam snapped shakily.

"Calm down Liam, he's okay now isn't he?" His best friend said reassuringly.

"Liam!" Theo shouted, holding himself up against a wall as he called out to the other boy.

"What the hell are you doing?" The younger wolf shouted back incredulously.

"Well I'm not out here for the good of my health." He replied dryly, panting a little from the effort.

"Is he walking after you?" Mason asked with a gentle voice and Liam let out a sigh, face softening as he walked back to help the other boy.

"You're gonna hurt yourself even worse." Liam informed the chimera worriedly.

"Well then it would be your fault for storming out like a diva." Theo snarked lightly, arm going over Liam's shoulders again as they made the short walk back to his place.

"Shut up." He mumbled and he could hear Mason and Corey snickering on the phone. "Both of you can shut up too."

"Ahh you're always so cute when you're embarrassed." Mason said cheerfully. "Anyway, glad you're both alive so I'll see you at school tomorrow."

"Okay, I'll see you tomorrow." Liam replied fondly.

Mason and Corey made their goodbyes, Liam and Theo chiming in with their own before they reached Theo's apartment.

"You coming in?" The chimera asked quietly, averting his eyes shyly.

"Theo...I-" Liam began before he was interrupted by the older one's lips against his own. He pushed back desperately, hands fisted in the collar of Theo's jacket and Theo's hands slid down to his lower back.

Theo pulled back first with a shaky breath, lightly touching his forehead against the other boy's and he smiled gently. "You coming in?" He repeated, softer this time and his hand slowly moved upwards to stroke Liam's cheek.

"Okay." Liam replied with a tender smile and he followed the Chimera into the apartment when he took his hand and pulled him in.

"I'm tired." Theo declared around a yawn. "Are you hungry?" He asked the other boy but Liam simply shook his head, feeling more than tired himself. "Bed it is."

Liam nodded nervously, they walked into Theo's bedroom and he looked over at the Chimera as he pulled off his shirt. The gauze taped to his chest had spots of red seeping through and Liam walked closer to place his hand on the Chimera's side, eyes never leaving the blood.

"You okay?" Theo asked him worriedly.

"You're the one that's hurt." Liam simply replied.

"I'll heal." Theo said softly, leaning in to kiss the younger boy lightly before pulling back and carefully kicking off his shoes.

"I know." The younger boy sighed in defeat before taking off his own shirt and shoes and getting into bed.

Theo eased himself into bed as well, both boys stared at the ceiling in awkward silence for a few moments before he let out a tired sigh and rolled to his side. Liam turned his head to look at him and the chimera couldn't help but slide a hand through the younger boy's hair, pulling back to stroke his cheek softly.

Liam leaned in and pressed his lips into the older boy's, reaching over to pull him closer as their tongue's tangled in a tentative dance. Theo smiled into the kiss before pulling back, burying his face in Liam's neck; enjoying the scent of contentment coming from the other boy and threw an arm across his waist.

Theo drifted to sleep easily, most likely due to his healing but Liam _couldn't_. His hand stroked lazy lines up and down Theo's back, which caused the sleepy Chimera to snuggle closer in his sleep and Liam smiled lightly.

The last three months had been hell for him, after Theo saving him in that hospital and then fighting together...For Theo to just ignore him hurt. Theo was his anchor, a fact that used to scare him especially when he wasn't sure if he could trust the older boy and he could have lost him tonight when he'd just got him back.

"You're thinking too hard." Theo murmured groggily, rubbing his nose soothingly into the younger wolf's neck.

"Sorry." Liam mumbled, not realising that his heartbeat had elevated with his thoughts.

"Don't be." Was the soft whisper as the chimera stroked the younger boy's side soothingly. "Try and get some sleep."

"Okay." The werewolf replied, kissing the chimera's hair before snuggling close and allowing Theo to pull him closer.

"Goodnight Liam." Theo sighed sleepily and gave his neck a gentle kiss.

"Night." He said and kissed his forehead before settling down to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Theo stirred and snuffled closer to the warm body in front of him. His gunshot wounds were still healing; slower than he would have liked but at least it didn't hurt as much as it had.

He blinked his eyes open with some difficulty and he smiled fondly when he looked at the softly snoring boy.

Liam had moved to his side in his sleep, arm wrapped tightly around Theo's back and nose nuzzling his hair every so often.

Theo tried to ease out of the younger wolf's grip so he could get up but he stilled when the boy let out a little whine and tightened his grip.

The chimera couldn't help but let out a quiet chuckle, reaching over to gently brush the hair that had fallen onto Liam's face away and causing the younger boy to let out a soft sigh.

"What time is it?" Liam mumbled sleepily, not even opening his eyes and buried his face in Theo's hair.

"I'm not sure; I don't have my phone anymore remember?" Theo replied, kissing the werewolf's collarbone and breathing in his scent.

Liam groaned, reluctantly pulling back and rolling to the other side to grab his hoody off of the floor so he could grab his phone. They had an hour before they had to be at school and his mom had texted him to ask him where he was; as well as making a snide remark about leaving notes when he was going to sneak off for 'werewolf business' in the middle of the night.

"You alright?" Theo asked the other boy in concern when he noticed him frowning.

"I'm fine, we need to be at school in an hour and my mom texted me." Liam responded absently as he texted her back, heart skipping slightly when he tried to think of a good response.

"You wanna talk about it?" The older boy murmured, hand softly stroking the younger wolf's back.

"Not right now." He replied, locking his phone and lying back down to lean into the chimera's warmth.

Theo let it go for now; Liam would talk when he's ready, he lightly brushed his lips against the other boy's forehead and smiled when Liam looked up at him.

"How are you feeling?" The wolf asked as he gently stroked his hand down Theo's side, careful not to touch the still healing wounds and leeching any lingering pain.

"I'm healing, slowly but surely." The chimera said with a grateful smile.

"Maybe you shouldn't go to school." Liam mumbled with a worried look and the older boy shook his head with a frown.

"It would look worse if I didn't; teenager gets shot outside a bar using a fake name and suddenly I don't show up for school? Can't risk it, if they make the link to me they could trace my links to you guys." Theo informed him matter of factly.

"If it hurts too much and I'm not around, just find me." Liam said determinedly and Theo smirked fondly at the wolf.

"I can deal with it, you think this is the first time someone's tried to kill me? Pretty sure you tried to kill me before just for opening my mouth." Theo snarked, carefully not mentioning the time they sent him to hell which technically, successfully _did_ kill him.

"Well you do have a knack for talking yourself into near death experiences." Liam replied and rolled his eyes. "But seriously, if you're in too much pain and you need me to he-" The chimera interrupted him with a soft kiss.

"Stop worrying idiot. Jesus you'd think I couldn't take care of myself." Theo sassed, giving the younger boy another tender kiss before getting out of bed. He held his breath through the pain but his heartbeat betrayed him as he was met with worried eyes when he turned to look at the wolf.

"Just for today?" Liam suggested with a sad look on his face.

"Fine, but I'm still going to school...and work." Theo added the second part with a little groan and he hoped he would be healed by then.

"Thank you." The werewolf murmured, lips tugging up in the corners before moving to get up himself.

Both boys got changed, Theo lending the younger wolf a shirt that was slightly too big for him before heading into the living room to get some cereal for breakfast. Theo went to look for his car keys and let out a growl when he realised that his car had been stolen the night before.

"I'm still pissed." He growled before taking a deep breath to reel back the wolf.

"You gonna be okay to walk?" Liam asked warily, reaching over to stroke the Chimera's back comfortingly.

"I'll live." Theo said angrily; face softening when Liam squeezed his hand lightly to calm him down.

"Let's go." The werewolf said keeping his hand linked with the Chimera's. "For the pain." He added lamely when he was met with Theo's questioning eyes.

Theo scoffed but felt his cheeks heat up as he pulled the werewolf out the door with him, any pain he felt was fleeting as the instant he could feel it, it was being taken away by Liam and Theo honestly didn't know what to say.

He knew Liam cared about him, their kiss last night...and subsequent kisses after was evidence of that but the werewolf's worry over him seemed like something more.

" _I'm not dying for you."_

" _I'm not dying for you either."_

Those were the words they told each other before deciding to fight together. Liam had gravitated towards him and Theo had assumed it had to do with the fact that Liam needed him to help fight. It would have been easier to run and the Theo he had been before Liam had saved him from Hell would have left that shit behind with a middle finger in the air as he drove away.

But Liam had saved him from hell, they bickered and Liam threatened to use him as bait and then saved him. Liam had saved him from that ghost rider and Theo had chosen to be the bait and save Liam in turn. He barely even had to think about it.

Yeah...Theo was weak when it came to the other boy and that terrified him but when Liam turned his head to smile at him with an affectionate look he couldn't help but feel happy.

Their day at school was uneventful and long. Theo's wounds had finally healed in their last class and Liam made sure to sit as close as possible to the chimera to take any pain.

When the bell rang, Theo went into the bathroom to remove the gauze and wipe the dried blood from his chest before making his way out to the waiting werewolf.

"I have to go to work." Theo informed the younger boy tiredly, healing had taken a lot out of him but he knew if he could just get through the day he'd be fine.

"I have to meet up with Argent and tell him about what happened...Are you sure you don't want me to walk with you?" Liam asked with a worried frown.

"Liam, I'm fine, the sooner you let Argent know what's happening the better." The older boy said in a reassuring tone.

"Meet you later?" The werewolf asked with eager eyes.

"Sure." Theo replied with a small smile, turning to walk away before being lightly pulled back by Liam's hand on his arm.

"Be careful." Liam murmured, leaning in to kiss Theo's cheek and the chimera averted his eyes with soft smile and warm cheeks.

"Thanks mom." The chimera replied sarcastically as he walked away but Liam smirked fondly when he noticed that the older boy was red at the neck.

Theo walked to work quickly, he missed his car and didn't realise how much he would miss it until it was gone. He was pissed as hell but he didn't think calling the sheriff about it would do much...If Theo was being honest; he was too afraid to ask him for favours.

You see it didn't matter what Theo had done since he had come back from hell...No one could forget what he'd done and no amount of putting his life on the line for other people would make them forgive him.

If the sheriff had heard about the boy that was shot outside the bar...and then found out it was _Theo_? He'd probably give the assholes responsible medals. At least that's what Theo was afraid of.

He went to hell; he suffered at the hands of his sister. It was what he deserved but it was a fate worse than death, she still haunted his dreams and last night was probably the first decent night's sleep he'd had since he came back.

Theo heard the footsteps following behind him and he subtly peeked behind but saw nothing. He slowed, coming towards an alley before he grabbed the invisible chimera and pushed him up against a wall.

Corey must have lost his grip on Mason because the human was suddenly visible and Theo loosened his grip before letting go when Corey reappeared.

"Why are you following me?" The older chimera asked with a raised brow.

"We just wanted to make sure you were safe." Corey said nervously.

"Yeah, you're pack." Mason explained, reaching over to make sure his boyfriend wasn't hurt and giving Theo a look like he should have known better.

"I think I can walk to work by myself, I'm not an invalid. Besides I completely healed like twenty minutes ago." Theo snarked at the two boys and folded his arms defensively.

"We just wanted to make sure you got to work, you nearly died last night so don't be a dick and let us walk with you." Mason said bluntly, smiling triumphantly when Theo merely rolled his eyes but didn't say no.

"Is that a yes?" Corey asked, looking over at Mason in relief.

"I can't stop you." Theo replied with a helpless shrug and began walking again.

The two boys rushed after the older chimera and walked hand in hand beside him. The walk was quiet as Theo was stubbornly ignoring them but Mason knew the older boy was grateful that they cared.

As they entered the bookstore, the two younger boys decided to have a look around and Theo headed behind the counter.

"Where the hell have you been? I tried phoning you but you're phone was switched off?" Gladys asked the chimera with a pointed look.

"Sorry Gladys, my phone broke last night. I dropped it down the toilet so the circuits fried." Theo lied with an apologetic smile.

"I can't believe you actually dropped your phone in the toilet." The lady grumbled with a quiet chuckle. "Don't you usually drive to work?" She asked him as an afterthought.

"Couldn't find my car keys this morning and I was gonna be late for school so I ran." He replied, avoiding eye contact as he reached for his book under the counter.

"Hey Theo, we'll see you later okay?" Mason called over to the chimera and Theo waved them off and turned back to his book.

"More friends?" Gladys asked incredulously but she smirked at him when he rolled his eyes at her.

"More like pains in the ass." Theo grunted but smiled fondly when he thought back on how they worried about him.

"They're kinda cute...if I was many years younger." She said with an exaggerated wink and Theo snorted.

"And if you were a dude." He remarked with a smug grin.

"Why is it always the good looking ones?" She sighed wistfully, she then shrugged lightly before heading upstairs to check the stock and different orders of new books coming in.

Theo sat on his stool reading quietly, only pausing when a customer came in and he noted with a sigh that his favourite bookmark was missing and he had to settle for a sticky note to mark where he left off as he went to serve the customer.

After two hours and only a few customers, Theo was deep into the story in this particular book. He heard the little bell tinkle as the door opened and closed, and he just couldn't stop reading.

He knew the customer would be busy perusing the different books they had for sale so he didn't feel too bad for not acknowledging them yet.

 _That scent though._

A familiar scent hit him, his nostrils flared and his head shot up.

A woman in a leather jacket stood with her back to him, reading through the different titles on the shelves and in her right hand was a laminated bookmark.

The bookmark read _'Monroe's Bookstore_ ' with a lilac fading into black coloured background with little white stars all over it.

Theo knew that bookmark well.

He stared at the woman's back with wide eyes, praying that the woman hadn't seen his face and he considered running upstairs and making up some excuse for Gladys to serve her.

"Theo, can you help me lift these boxes downstairs. I'm too old to be doing this myself you know?!" Gladys called down and the woman turned quickly.

Theo's breath hitched.

Their eyes met.

She smirked causing the chimera's heart to drop.

"Theo, did you hear me?" Gladys asked as she walked through the door. "Oh hello dear, can we help you?" She asked the woman in front of them.

"Oh no, thank you." The woman replied with a polite smile. "I just wanted to tell _Theo_ that he left this in my car." She added with a wink at the still frozen chimera as she held the bookmark out and he accepted it with shaking fingers.

"Silly boy." Gladys smirked as she ruffled his hair and he barely even noticed.

"I'll see you around Theo." The woman said around a flirtatious smirk, walking backwards a little before heading out the door with a sway in her hips.

"Well you certainly get around, don't you?" Gladys sassed the boy. "You'd think you've never seen a girl in your life." She laughed quietly but Theo could feel nothing but dread.

She knew...

She knew his name and where he worked now.

It would only be a matter of time before she found out about his links to the pack and...

 _Liam_.

Gladys could be in danger as well. God why didn't he just stay in hell? Well, that was being a little overdramatic. Maybe he shouldn't panic, maybe they'll just try and attack him after work. He could deal with it then.

He helped Gladys with whatever she needed, absently grabbing heavier boxes than a normal boy his size _should_ be able to carry without even breaking a sweat and the lady eyed him strangely as he passed.

When it was closing time, Gladys put on her coat as it was a little chillier than usual and Theo fretted over what to do.

"Let me walk you to your car." Theo told her with a worried smile.

"No it's quite alright, I'll manage on my own." She replied warmly.

"No it's okay, I just want to make sure you get to your car safely." He insisted nervously.

"Theo, are you okay? My car is just outside." Gladys asked him worriedly when she picked up on his anxiety.

"Yeah I'm fine, just let me lock up and I'll walk you to your car." He told her with a small smile as he grabbed the keys for the store and followed the lady out so he could lock the door and pull the shutter down before locking it too.

"You really didn't need to do this." She smiled fondly when they were standing outside her car.

"It's fine." He told her warmly. "See you tomorrow." He added as she got into her car with a fond shake of her head and she drove away. Theo scanned the area to make sure no one followed her before making his way towards his apartment.

He had the feeling of being watched, he knew it wasn't just him being paranoid and when he saw the black SUV behind him, he ran.

The car raced to catch him, two men leaning out of the car windows on either side trying to shoot him with silencer pistols and he dodged the bullets as he ran. He ran down an alley trying to avoid the car, using a dumpster as leverage to get onto a roof before running and jumping to the next roof.

He saw his car then. _HIS_ car and he couldn't quite suppress the growl then but thankfully no one could hear it.

"I'm so fucked." Theo grumbled as he thought over what to do, the hunters knew he was on that roof and his fight or flight instincts were at war.

Fighting them meant that he had the potential to win or die trying; preventing these particular hunters from attacking the pack and flight meant that he had the potential to lead them to his apartment.

He decided to run and lead them away. He ran and launched himself at the hunters' SUV, landing on the roof before flipping and landing on the ground. He grinned at the surprise on the hunters' faces before waving and running for his life.

The cars scrambled and skidded around to try and keep up with him and he only allowed himself to stop and duck behind a car once in a while to avoid getting shot.

That's when he heard it. The sonic traps and he knew he was screwed as he moved away from the sound, he may be a chimera but he still had all the instincts of a werewolf.

He was fucked.

He was backed into a corner in an alley, and he could see Julia and Sam making their way towards him from one side and the other hunters on the other side.

"Hey Josh!" Sam called jovially. "Or is it Theo?"

Theo stayed silent, trying to think of a way out of this that didn't involve him wolfing out.

A gunshot hit the wall behind him and he flinched as he looked from the wall and back to the hunters nervously.

"Answer me!" Sam shouted angrily, face twisting into an ugly grimace.

"It's Theo." The chimera answered, he was well past his ' _fuck it_ ' threshold and he knew he was going to have to do something.

"So you lied to me?" The hunter exclaimed with a feigned look of hurt.

"You shot me." Theo said smirking with a confidence he didn't feel.

"And yet here you stand." Sam said knowingly.

"Yes...I do." The chimera replied, eyes glowing gold as he shifted and he jumped. He swiped the gun out of Sam's hand before he could shoot him, tripping the man and knocking Julia into the wall before running.

He ran into the street, launching on top of a building before hopping from roof to roof towards his apartment. He stayed low on his roof for a while, too afraid to drop down in case their cars drove past and he was seen.

They'd be out for blood next. He knew it and next time it might not be his.

He turned quickly when he felt the hand on his shoulder, howling into the face of Liam in a panic and his arm was raised as if to strike before cutting himself off when he realised. Liam looked at him in shock, a worried frown forming on his face and he reached over to place his hand on the older boy's shifted cheek.

"Are you okay Theo? What happened?" Liam asked him anxiously, he could still smell the fear in the air and the frantic heartbeat of the chimera. Liam had been waiting outside for the Chimera to come back from work since he didn't have a phone but he had heard the panicked thumping of his heart coming from the roof and had climbed up to see what was wrong.

"I'm fine." Theo said dismissively, taking deep breaths to calm himself enough so he could shift back.

"Theo." Liam begged softly, hugging the other boy and rubbing a comforting hand up and down his back.

This wasn't good...Theo needed to leave. They knew who he was, they'll find out about Liam, Mason and Corey. They know about Gladys. Connections made you weak and the old Theo made sure to never get too close to anyone.

But _this_ Theo.

The person he was now had people he cared about, sure emotions were hard for him considering they had been conditioned out of him by years of torture and experimenting by the Dread Doctors but he was working on it.

He cared more for the boy in front of him than anything else; even more than living.

"Liam." Theo murmured, burying his face in the werewolf's shoulder and clutching the boy's back with clawless fingers, he had shifted back; calmed by this boy's presence.

"Tell me what's wrong." Liam said gently.

"I...I think I need to go." The chimera replied brokenly

"What do you mean? Go where?" The younger boy asked defensively, clutching the boy tighter in response as if he could stop Theo from going anywhere.

"They know who I am Liam. They'll be coming for everyone." _They'll be coming for you_.

"Who does?" Liam coaxed, even though he knew what Theo was saying, he just needed to keep him talking to find a solution.

"The hunters from last night, I left the stupid bookmark in my car and she showed up to my work. Saw my face, Gladys said my name and she saw her too. They tried to attack me after work; I got away but Liam..." Theo pulled back, placing both hands on the sides of Liam's face to look at him desperately. "They'll find out about you." _Us_.

"We can handle it, you're not going anywhere." The younger werewolf replied stubbornly. "Argent knows what's happening, he's got some back up and we're going to be ready for them."

"They're going to kill everyone, anyone associated and anyone who tries to defend us." Theo insisted.

"And if you leave who will protect them? Me? Mason and Corey? We need you!" _I need you_. Liam shouted and he was shaking his head anxiously. "You can't leave Theo. You just can't!" He demanded.

"Dammit Liam, I don't want you to fucking die! And that's what they're going to do; they're going to fucking kill you." Theo finally voiced the one fucking thing that scared him the most; he couldn't live with himself if Liam was to die because of him. Or if he died at all.

"Shut up!" Liam roared and Theo stopped in surprise at how raw Liam looked. "You don't get to pull that shit! You nearly died last night, you think I wanted to see that?!" Liam looked close to tears but he was holding them back.

"Liam, I need to go..." The chimera told him weakly. "They're looking for me right now, if I don't go they-." Liam grabbed the other boy by the collar of his shirt and smashed their lips together. Theo tried to pull back, his resolve weakening but Liam held tighter, _desperate_.

"You _can't_." He begged softly, a tear finally falling down one cheek and Theo broke. He kissed the younger boy; this time softer, tender, like he was apologising for even suggesting that he was leaving. He reached up to wipe the werewolf's tears with the pads of thumb and Liam's hands slid up to curl around his neck.

"I'm sorry." Theo murmured after they had stood there holding each other for a few moments. "I just panicked."

"I know." Liam merely replied, kissing the chimera's cheek before pulling back to press their foreheads together lightly. "Just don't say something like that again; we can figure this out together."

"I just don't want you to get hurt." Theo mumbled.

"Well I don't want that for you either but running away won't solve anything." The younger boy replied honestly.

"I know." The chimera replied with a defeated expression.

Liam offered his hand out for the older boy to take and he did, linking their fingers together with a soft smile on his face. "Let's get outta here." The werewolf said with a gentle look.

Theo nodded in response before dragging the boy with him so they could jump down from the roof without hurting themselves, pulling his apartment keys out of his pocket and unlocking the door.

"So you said Argent had back up?" Theo asked the werewolf curiously as he guided them to the couch and sat down.

"Yeah, a group of hunters that sticks to their code and don't agree with these hunters. Especially when these ones seem to not care about killing innocent people as well." Liam responded, leaning into the older boy's warmth and breathing in his scent contentedly.

"Will they be able to get here in time? I have a feeling they're going to attack earlier now." The chimera questioned worriedly.

"Yeah, they're waiting for something like this to happen but Argent wants me to call him when it's happening." Liam answered, stroking the back of Theo's hand with his thumb, fingers still linked tightly and the wolf let out a content sigh.

"I'm so tired." Theo simply said after a few moments of comfortable silence.

"You should get some sleep." The werewolf murmured softly, rummaging in his pocket and handing a phone out to Theo. "Argent gave me the burner; you need to be able to contact us and vice versa. I don't want something to happen and you can't call me."

"Thanks." Theo said gratefully, a surprised look on his face that Liam would even think about that and he pulled the younger boy tighter against him with one arm and his free hand reaching up to accept the phone. He leaned over and kissed him on the forehead when Liam smiled up at him.

"You're welcome." The boy replied before frowning a little. "I have to go home now, my mom wants to talk to me but I can call over later?" He added hopefully.

"Sure." Theo murmured, pulling his apartment key from his pocket. "I'll probably be asleep by the time you get back though." He offered the keys out to Liam and the werewolf took them with a smile and reluctantly pulled himself out of the other boys grip.

"I'll be back as soon as I can, don't wait up." He told the chimera and leaned down to kiss him quickly before leaving to deal with his mother.

Theo smiled contentedly, he was still anxious about the hunters but Liam was right; running wouldn't solve anything and besides they were stronger together. He pushed himself off the sofa and headed towards his room; he kicked his shoes off, pulled off his shirt and changed into some comfortable pyjama bottoms before crawling into bed.

It was colder without Liam, he'd noticed and even though he'd only spent one night with the beta; he already missed his warmth to sleep. Knowing that the wolf would be back later, he curled the blankets around himself and settled down to sleep.

He stirred drowsily when he felt someone carefully curling around his back in the night and the scent of Liam settled around him like a warm drink on a cold day. Liam's nose nuzzled the back of his neck softly and the chimera linked his fingers with the hand over his stomach before he drifted off.

When Theo woke up he had made a decision. He might have decided to stay in Beacon Hills, courtesy of his weakness for seeing Liam upset and just generally being unable to say no to the boy. But...He would have to quit his job.

It wouldn't be fair to put Gladys at risk like that, she decided to help him out but she didn't know what she was getting into and these hunters could kill her just for giving him a job?!

He'd told Liam he'd catch up with him after he had quit, the werewolf had offered to go with him but Theo shook his head and told him to meet with Corey and Mason to make sure they were safe.

Theo walked to work with a bit of heaviness in his chest, he wasn't looking forward to this because the woman had grown on him and had given him a chance when no one else would. Now he was going to have to throw it all back in her face and honestly he felt like shit.

When he walked in, she smiled warmly at him and he faltered a little.

"Hello Theo, did you get home alright?" Gladys asked him in greeting.

"Uh, yeah it was fine." The chimera replied shakily, he could hear Mrs Kelly behind him humming curiously as she browsed the books at the back of the room and he was starting to get nervous.

"Is everything okay?" She asked him with a worried frown.

"Uh...no not really." Theo told her softly.

"What's wrong?" The lady questioned.

"I have to quit." The boy told her.

"Don't even joke." She chuckled with a relieved shrug.

"I'm not kidding, I'm so grateful for everything you've done for me but I have to quit this job." He explained sadly.

"Why?" Gladys asked, she looked hurt and Theo sometimes longed for the days where he didn't care...Or didn't know how to care for anyone.

"I can't say, I'm sorry. I-" Theo trailed off when he heard the cars pulling up outside, the guns being loaded and hunters discussing their plan with each other. "Shit." He hissed, head turning to look outside quickly.

" _Just light the place up_ "

The chimera didn't think, he just ran to sweep Mrs Kelly into his arms, rushing over the counter to grab Gladys and pushed her to the floor carefully as the bullets rained down on the store. The two women screamed and panicked as Theo tried to cover them the best that he could from the onslaught.

The shower of bullets paused and Theo grabbed both of the women and carried them up the stairs to the staff room. Placing both of the women on the couch and ignoring their fearful and questioning looks, he ran to push a heavy bookcase in front of the door and anything else that could help prevent anyone from breaking in.

"Are you both okay? Are either of you hurt?" Theo turned to them and asked worriedly, reaching up to check the stinging area around his shoulder; a bullet had thankfully just grazed him and was healing quickly.

"What's happening darling, I'm so frightened." Mrs Kelly asked anxiously and Theo smiled reassuringly at her.

"It's going to be okay, I won't let anything happen to you." He told her before turning to Gladys with a look of shame on his features.

"Why are they doing this?" Gladys asked him, gasping slightly as she covered the wound in her leg.

"You've been shot?" He asked her worriedly as he came closer, he removed his jacket and placed it on the wound to try and stem the flow of blood. "Does it hurt badly?"

"It does but I'll be okay." She told him with a pained smile.

Theo didn't even have to think about it, reaching for her hand and taking her pain. She gasped a little in both pain and relief as she watched the veins flowing up his arm.

"I'm sorry." He told her, averting his gaze when she looked at him questioningly.

"What are you?" Gladys asked him knowingly but he couldn't tell if she was angry or disgusted with him or she didn't care.

He sighed, standing up when the veins of pain stopped flowing and he pulled the burner phone out of his pocket. "I need you to call Liam and then the sheriff okay?" He told her. "Neither of you are to go near the window or the door unless you have no choice okay?" Theo added to the women, rolling his shoulders when he geared himself up for what he was about to do.

"What are you going to do?" Mrs Kelly asked warily, she was shaking slightly; her heartrate elevated and Theo knew he should keep her calm because of her age.

He knelt in front of the women then. "I'm gonna do whatever I can to keep you safe okay?"

"You're one of them aren't you?" Gladys asked, demanding an answer and he turned to her guiltily.

"Yes and no." Theo mumbled.

"What do you mean by that?" She questioned curiously, hissing a little as she shifted in her seat.

"I'm not a normal one, I was a science experiment..." He trailed off when he heard the hunters moving into the store and looking around for them. "They're in the store I need to go."

"Go where? How are you going to get out without letting them in?" Gladys called after him anxiously when he stood, moving carefully towards the window and opening it wide.

"Stay away from the window." He reminded them, Theo rolled his neck and his eyes began to glow. He shifted then, growling a little to gear himself up before running and launching out the window. The two women called after him worriedly as he jumped, landing on two unsuspecting hunters who were talking between themselves and knocking them unconscious.

The commotion drew the attention of the other hunters and Theo howled at them before rolling behind one of their cars to dodge the bullets being shot in his direction. He could hear Gladys' harsh whispers as she talked on the phone and he felt relief when the sheriff said he was sending units their way.

A few hunters exited the store to chase after him and he launched out, clawing one of them in the chest and kicking another into a wall. One managed to shoot him in the arm and he let out a pained howl before jumping and taking him down with a bite to his shoulder and ripping the shotgun out of his hands.

He could hear the women upstairs crying out worriedly when someone was kicking the door loudly and he ran into the store, he punched one of the hunters in the face; taking her by surprise and he jumped over the counter to run upstairs. He pulled one of the men back by his jacket and threw him down the stairs with a growl and the other managed to hit him in the face with the butt of his shotgun.

Theo fell back into the wall and he froze when the shotgun was suddenly aimed at his face.

"Don't move asshole. The boss wants to see you." The man said threateningly. "Hands where I can see'em or we'll kill those two old broads."

Theo swallowed nervously, weighing his options but he stood carefully with his hands up.

"Turn around, hands on the back of your head and walk." The hunter demanded and the chimera did what he was told, walking slowly down the stairs. If he could lead them away from Gladys and Mrs Kelly, they'd be safe. He walked out of the store, more hunters were outside as well as Sam and Julia who were waiting for him with _his_ truck still running behind them and Sam grinned sinisterly.

"Theo!" He greeted jovially. "It's great to see you." Julia giggled beside him, their guns were pointed at him and Theo growled slightly.

"Don't be like that baby." Julia pouted and he merely glared in their direction.

"Aw I don't think he likes us babe." Sam told her with a feigned sadness.

"Just get this over with. You have me now let's get the hell out of here." Theo snarked angrily, he was done with this whole routine and he didn't want the two women to see him like that.

"Nah, I think we'll stay here. Have some questions for you anyway." Sam said with a smirk on his face, his eyes met the guy behind him and he fell to his knees when he felt the shotgun hitting him on the back of the head.

"What do you want?" Theo growled out around his fangs, golden eyes glaring at Sam and he tried to reel back the anger with deep breaths.

"How'd you get past the mountain ash in the bar?" Julia asked curiously, obviously when he'd wolfed out last night they had recounted their meeting a few times and couldn't get past the fact that a typical werewolf had managed to break the rules.

Theo smirked, fangs peeking out and he chuckled confidently. Sam's expression turned into an angry frown and he shot Theo in the side before shooting up at the window causing the women inside to shriek in fear.

"Leave them out of this!" He growled, side burning with the pain and he could hear Gladys trying to reassure Mrs Kelly inside and letting her call her daughter with his phone.

"They deserve to die just like you do! You are against the will of God and no fucking acceptance of the supernatural will change that." Sam screamed at him, waving a pistol in the chimera's face as spit flew from his lips in his fury. "So you will answer the fucking questions or I'll go up there and kill them myself."

Theo gasped in pain, nodding his head frantically when Sam pointed his gun back up at the window. "Fine whatever you want to know just leave them be."

"How did you get past the mountain ash?!" He asked, gun pointed towards his head. "How did you drink the wolvesbane and how did you survive all those wolvesbane bullets?!"

"I..." Theo faltered, if he told the truth, Sam could kill him and then attack the women anyway. If he didn't, he'd definitely try to kill them. In the end there was only one choice. "I'm not a werewolf, I'm a chimera."

"A Chimera? And that is?" Julia asked with a smirk. Sirens could be heard in the distance, Mrs Kelly and Gladys were talking frantically about him and Theo just looked back at the hunters with a bloody snarl.

"A science experiment; I'm half werewolf, half werecoyote. I was taken as a child and created this way. That means I'm part human too so wolvesbane doesn't affect me as much, I can walk through mountain ash without breaking a sweat. Now I gave you what you wanted so let them go." Theo explained through pained gasps.

"Thank you for your cooperation Theo." Sam said dismissively, gun pointing towards his head and finger close to pulling the trigger. Theo closed his eyes, accepting his fate and he wished he could have talked to Liam one last time...

Everything moved in slow motion, and Theo's eyes opened wide when he heard the angry growl from the side. Liam had launched himself at Sam, the shot had fired but missed Theo by mere inches and he stood quickly to leap at Julia before she could shoot the werewolf.

The other hunters broke out of their surprise then, and both boys worked together to fight off the onslaught, finding themselves back to back before striking more often than not.

"What took you so long?" Theo accused as he knocked a hunter out with her own gun and stepped back to feel the familiar pressure of the other boy's back.

"This isn't the only place being attacked you know?! I came as soon as I could." Liam shouted back, ducking under a hunter's taser, punching him in the crotch and kicking him back to the ground before backing up towards the chimera.

The sheriff's back-up arrived before Theo could say anything else, a few other hunters from Argent's group pulling up alongside them as they started shooting the hunters.

"This isn't over Theo!" Sam shouted, supported by Julia as they tried to back up towards his car.

"No you don't." Liam growled and leaped towards them; knocking them off balance. This time he'd managed to pin Julia to the ground, roaring in her face when he was shot in the shoulder and the right side of his chest by both of them before Sam's gun was being placed against his temple.

"Liam!" Theo shouted, jumping and biting into Sam's shoulder. He wrestled the gun from the man and threw it away. The back-up made quick work of the other hunters and Parrish rushed over to cuff the couple.

Theo rushed over to see if Liam was okay, the black blood leaking from the werewolf's mouth terrified him and he quickly placed his hands on his face and neck to take his pain.

"Liam, we need to get you to Deaton's now." Theo told the boy anxiously and the boy merely smiled in relief to see the chimera was okay.

"I love you." Liam choked out weakly and Theo looked at him with wide eyes.

"You tell me this NOW?!" The chimera snarked worriedly, pulling the other boy into his arms and standing shakily. He wasn't feeling too great himself but he knew that Liam would just get worse the longer the wolvesbane was in his system.

"Theo." The werewolf murmured, his hand softly stroking his cheek as if to tell the chimera to take this seriously.

"I love you too you idiot." Theo exclaimed anxiously, he looked around for the sheriff as the hunters were being arrested and he spotted him talking to Parrish and Argent.

"I know." Liam mumbled with a weak smile before passing out and Theo panicked and rushed over.

"Is Liam alright?" Stilinski asked worriedly.

"He's been shot; I need to take him to Deaton's now. Gladys and Mrs Kelly are upstairs; I barricaded them in before jumping out the window so be careful and Gladys was shot in the leg so she needs medical attention." Theo informed them quickly, his truck was still running so he was definitely stealing his car back but he needed to make sure they knew what was happening first.

"You did good kid." The Sheriff told him and Theo looked up gratefully, the sheriff looked back with a look of resigned pride; he didn't fully trust him but it was a start.

Theo nodded before rushing to his truck and setting Liam down in the passenger side like he was made of glass. He cracked the windows as the smell of sex from the backseat was disgusting and he growled bitterly for a moment before the fear for the other boy consumed him again.

He broke a few speeding laws as he tried to get to Deaton's in time and he knew the sheriff wouldn't mind. Surprisingly the veterinary clinic hadn't been hit; how Deaton managed to avoid the hunter's radar was beyond him but he was grateful as he struggled out of his car with the unconscious boy and carried him in through the door.

"What can I do for you?" Deaton greeted absently as he walked in before frowning in concern and opening his gate quickly, not that it would have stopped Theo but it was a courtesy. "Put him on the table."

Theo did as he was told, panicking as the heartbeat of the wolf was getting weaker and Deaton rushed over with his supplies.

"I need you to hold him down; he might wake up and try to move." Deaton told the chimera and he nodded weakly, reaching over to hold Liam down whilst making sure to avoid his wounds and Deaton began to remove the bullets.

It was when he went to burn the wolvesbane on the injury on his chest that Liam's golden eyes shot open, howling and struggling in Theo's grip.

"Liam! Hey, it's me. Calm down okay. We're at Deatons, we need to patch you up." Theo called out to the other boy soothingly and Liam stopped struggling but was groaning a little in pain.

"Theo?" Liam moaned, lifting his hands to grip around the wrists of the boy holding him down.

"Yeah, it's me. You're gonna be okay." He reassured the boy as Deaton moved towards the wound on Liam's shoulder. "Tell me about Mason and Corey, where are they right now?" He added to distract the werewolf, although he wanted to know as well.

"Th...They're at the school, there's a lacrosse game on today. Nolan's c-captain today and they wanted to protect people going to the g-game-." Liam broke off to howl in pain, thrashing a little as Deaton set fire to the other wound and Theo tried to hold on, he really did but his grip slipped and the wolf sent him crashing backward.

"Jesus Liam." Theo groaned, his own wounds getting irritated but at least the wolvesbane didn't affect him like it did last time.

"Theo, are you okay?" Liam asked him worriedly, significantly calmer now that the wolvesbane was out of his system and he was healing now.

"Yeah, just lost my grip." The chimera grumbled as he struggled to stand, reaching over to brush the boy's hair back from his face with a troubled look.

"You were hurt too." The werewolf said, smelling the blood in the air and turning to Deaton anxiously.

"Don't worry I'm not as bad off as you were." He explained and pulled off his shirt, he was still bleeding from his side and arm and Deaton made quick work of removing the bullets and patching him up with gauze and the healing cream. Liam being a werewolf meant that he had to get the harsher treatment so Theo counted his blessings where he could get them.

"Thanks Deaton, we wouldn't survive without you." Liam told the veterinarian gratefully.

"It's my pleasure." Deaton replied with a friendly smile.

"Is your phone still with Gladys?" Liam asked the older boy warily after Deaton had finished his work and Theo put his bloody shirt back on.

"Yeah, I need to make sure she's okay. I owe her a lot." Theo replied and helped the younger boy stand up.

"Can I come with you?" He asked softly and Theo smiled warmly at the boy.

"Of course." He replied as he helped Liam walk out towards his car. "I love you." He murmured as he looked at the werewolf's eyes before leaning in to kiss him tenderly.

"I love you too." Liam replied warmly, nose wrinkling up when they got closer to the car and ruining the moment. "Oh my god what the hell is that?"

"Those assholes had sex in my car." Theo growled out as he helped Liam get in the car before walking around to get in himself. "God I wish I had killed them." His eyes flashed gold and his hands clenched around the steering wheel and Liam placed his hand on his shoulder comfortingly.

"But you wouldn't, not anymore." He said knowingly.

"I know." Theo responded and slumped his shoulders, he leaned over to nose into the others neck. Needing to scent the other to make sure he was really okay, his instincts were still on high alert and he knew that part of that had to do with his chimera status and the larger part had to do with his fear of losing the other boy.

What chimeras gained resistance to mountain ash and certain amounts of wolvesbane, they lacked in control of themselves and their instincts. Liam rubbed his hand up and down the older boy's back gently, scenting the chimera to reassure himself too and before they knew it they were hugging in relief.

"I'm glad you're okay." Liam murmured, pulling back to kiss Theo desperately; their tongues tangled and their hands gripped at each other frantically. Theo was the first to pull back, stroking the werewolf's cheek with a vulnerable expression before leaning back in his seat to start his truck and driving to the hospital.

The drive was silent, comfortable as they each paid attention to the beat of the other's heart and they each let out a sigh when Theo parked so they could get out of the car and away from that scent.

"Let's go." Theo said as he raised the younger boy's arm over his shoulder and helped him walk into the hospital. Melissa sighed in relief when her eyes settled on them and she ushered them over to the side quickly to talk to them.

"Are you boys alright?" She asked worriedly.

"We're okay, Theo got us to Deaton's in time." Liam told her with a warm look.

"Thank god. Mason and Corey are upstairs watching over Nolan. He's okay." She added quickly as both boys looked at her in panic. "He was shot in the leg trying to save Alex."

"Is Alex okay?" Theo asked her quietly.

"Alex is fine, a little freaked out but he said he's used to it. I'll take him home after my shift, he wants to stay with Mason, Corey and Nolan right now." She answered honestly. "You're dad is worried sick by the way." She added to Liam with a look and he sighed guiltily in response.

"What did he want me to do? Mom had a fit last night; shouting at me for being something I can't change and it's not like I love just standing there while she does it." Liam replied defensively and Theo squeezed his side comfortingly.

"Don't worry, she'll come around. You think I was okay with Scott when I first found out? No, I turned my back on him but I came around, she will too." Melissa told the boy warmly.

"How do you know?" He asked her with a vulnerable expression.

"Because I'm a mom." She smiled then and gestured for them to follow as she walked down the hall towards the elevators.

"I'm sorry Liam, why didn't you wake me?" Theo murmured to the wolf beside him sadly; he felt bad for not being there for him but Liam shook his head lightly.

"Because you were exhausted, you looked and smelled so content; I didn't want to disturb the peace. I just wanted to lie down with you and forget about it." He admitted shyly and Theo smiled fondly.

"LIAM!" Liam's step-father called out as he noticed the two bruised boys carrying each other before they could get into the elevator and he ran to catch up with them.

"Dad?" The werewolf said awkwardly and before he knew it he was dragged out from under the chimera's arm and into a hug, Theo pushing him lightly towards the anxious man.

"Thank god you're okay. I was worried sick! Your mom too." Dr Geyer exclaimed as he clutched the boy tight.

"Can't breathe dad." Liam complained lightly and the grip loosened minutely.

"You want to know why your mom has been so angry with you lately?" The man asked his son with a raised brow.

"Because she can't accept this." The werewolf said insecurely, shrugging his shoulders helplessly.

"Because she doesn't know when you'll come home. You leave in the middle of the night to go fight off who-knows-what and you are in very real danger of being hurt, I mean look at you now. Yes she's having a little trouble digesting this at the moment but all she wants is for you to leave a note, just to say you're going out with friends or even to fight off who-knows-what." Dr Geyer explained worriedly and Liam nodded guiltily.

"Sorry Dad." He replied and the man brushed his hand through Liam's hair.

"It's okay, just be more careful next time and try and see it from your mother's point of view." The man spoke softly.

"I'll try if she does." Liam mumbled and his step-dad accepted it as it was better than nothing.

"Alright, you can go see your friends now." Dr Geyer agreed, giving him one last squeeze before rushing off to go treat patients that had been affected by the attack.

"Bye Dad." The werewolf called after him, leaning back into the Chimera's warmth as he knew the older boy was there and linking their fingers.

"I think that went well." Theo murmured and gave his hand a comforting squeeze.

"Yeah it did." Liam replied with a grateful tug of his lips and he turned to meet Theo's eyes.

Melissa cleared her throat behind them and they had the decency to look sheepish and she gave them a knowing look. A smug _Mom_ look and Liam groaned when she rubbed both their cheeks with a grin.

Theo rolled his eyes before looking at the elevator questioningly, he wanted to see if Nolan was okay but he still needed to check on Gladys and Melissa smiled. "She's on the same floor but a different ward." She told the chimera and he gave her a grateful look.

"Thanks." He said as he helped Liam into the Elevator and Melissa pressed the button for the fourth floor.

Melissa led the two boys to the room Nolan was in first. Alex was sitting in the chair beside him quietly, Corey and Mason standing behind him and they all turned with relieved looks on their faces when they saw the boys there.

"Thank god." Mason breathed out as he moved towards his best friend to hug him first, before moving to give a surprised Theo a hug too. Corey followed, hugging them both and Alex made his hesitant way towards them to do the same.

"I would get up too but you know?" Nolan explained, gesturing towards his leg with a pained grimace when it shifted lightly and Alex moved over to place his hand on the older boy's wrist to take his pain.

"What happened to you guys?" Corey asked worriedly.

"We got shot but I got us to Deaton, the sheriff and Argent's friends were able to help take out the other hunters." Theo explained quietly and Liam looked at Mason with a small smile when he gave the werewolf a knowing look.

"What about you guys?" Liam asked, face frowning in concern as he looked at Nolan's bandaged leg.

"A group of hunters attacked the school, some of Argents friends showed up to help protect the school and Coach totally knocked a few guys out with a lacrosse stick. He lost his shit saying he was sick of this crap and saved this kid from our class when a hunter managed to corner him." Mason explained quickly.

"Mason and I kept knocking them out when we were invisible. But they slowly caught on to that and started randomly shooting in the air so I had to get us out of there." Corey added nervously.

"Nolan shot one of the hunters who cornered me and another shot him in the leg before the sheriff's deputies showed up. I'm just glad it's over now." Alex informed them quietly, he could still be a little shy with the pack, especially when Scott wasn't around but he was getting better.

"At least no one was killed." Liam said in relief, he could smell the older chimera's anxiety behind him and he turned to look at him worriedly. "What's wrong?"

"I'm gonna head off to see if Gladys and Mrs Kelly are okay." He murmured and Melissa pointed in the direction of the women's ward when he looked at her.

"Okay, need me to come with you?" The wolf asked with a concerned frown and Theo shook his head softly.

"You don't have to." He mumbled and averted his eyes.

Liam smiled gently when he realised that Theo wanted him to come and he nudged the Chimera's side to coax him to look at him. "Let's go."

They bid their friends goodbye, Mason giving Liam a look like ' _We are going to talk about this later_ ' and made their way towards the women's ward. Theo followed the scent of the woman who gave him a chance when no one else did and he met her eyes guiltily when she looked up at him.

"Thank god." Gladys let out with a relieved expression. Mrs Kelly had been sitting on the seat beside her and she stood up quickly to run into his arms to hug him.

"Theo darling, are you alright?" She asked worriedly, two young women stood behind her looking at him gratefully and he smiled warily.

"I'm fine are you both okay?" He asked the two elderly women, Mrs Kelly had backed off then and moved towards her daughter and her girlfriend.

"We're fine, the doctors treated my leg and they said I'll be back on my feet in a few weeks." Gladys told him.

"I'm so sorry." Theo murmured guiltily.

"Why, did you shoot me?" The woman sassed him with a raised brow.

"No but it's my fault." He told her and Liam subtly rubbed his back soothingly.

"No it isn't, I had a slight suspicion about you anyway and those thugs had no right shooting up my store." Gladys remarked bitterly. "Is that why you tried to bail on me?" She added with a knowing look.

"Yeah, I was hoping they'd leave the store alone if I just quit." Theo replied quietly

"Well that obviously wouldn't have worked." She snarked and he grimaced slightly. "I'll expect you at work as soon as the store is fixed and I'll be taking fifty dollars from your weekly paycheque to make sure the damages can be paid for." Theo looked up at her in surprise.

"Wait, you still want me to work for you?" The chimera asked in shock.

"Well I can't clean up the place myself, you saying you can't help me?" Gladys smiled warmly when he looked back in disbelief. "Thank you Liam for getting there so quickly when I called." She added to the werewolf.

"Thanks for calling me." He replied, his nose wrinkling a little when he looked over at the two younger women.

"Leave it to Mom to call us too late when we're out of town, by the time we got back all the action was over." Mrs Kelly's daughter; Gemma was it? Said with a small grin; her eyes flashing yellow as she looked over at her girlfriend whose eyes flashed too.

"Wait what?" Theo asked and met Liam's confused gaze.

"Oh did I not mention that darling? I was too afraid of someone finding out about them and those ruffians coming to hurt my girls." Mrs Kelly informed him guiltily.

"Thank you for saving her." Gemma said to the chimera. "I don't know what I would have done if she'd been hurt." Her girlfriend linked their fingers together in a comforting gesture.

"It was no problem." Theo said shyly and Gladys grinned warmly.

"I'll have to wash your jacket before you get it back." The woman informed him worriedly and he shook his head softly.

"You don't have to, I can clean it myself." He replied with an appreciative smile.

"No it's okay, I need to lure you back to work someway so you'll just have to come in to get it. Oh, and before I forget." Gladys said as she reached over to her side table and grabbed the phone Theo had loaned her earlier. "Here, you forgot this."

"Thanks." He murmured as he reached over to take the phone back.

"The store will be closed for the next week, make sure your butt is in school and I wrote the number for that phone down so I'll be calling you when the store reopens." She told him with a raised brow and he nodded.

"Okay." He agreed. "Well we'll be heading home now, let me know if you need any help getting out of the hospital." Theo added and Liam smiled warmly.

"See you later Theo and it was nice seeing you again Liam." Gladys said with a small wave, Mrs Kelly and the two women made their goodbyes as well and the two boys made their way out of the hospital.

"You staying at mine tonight?" Theo asked the younger wolf as he guided them to his car.

"Yeah, if that's okay? It's still a bit awkward at home." Liam told the older boy gratefully as Theo helped him into the passenger side, both boys were still healing but at least Deaton had patched them up well.

"Of course it is." Theo said warmly as he got into his own side and started the car.

He parked outside his apartment, taking a deep breath as he tried to relax his muscles after this entire day, he got out of his car quickly and moved over to help Liam get out.

"Are you doing okay?" Liam asked him in concern as Theo pulled out his apartment keys after locking his car.

"Yeah, just can't wait to collapse in bed." He murmured tiredly, unlocking the door and helping the werewolf onto the sofa.

"I'm kinda hungry you wanna order something?" Liam asked the older boy. "My treat?"

"Sure, what are you in the mood for?" The chimera replied as he eased himself on the couch beside the boy.

"Chinese?" The wolf asked with hopeful eyes, he hadn't had anything to eat since that morning and his stomach grumbled loud to their enhanced ears.

"Okay." Theo chuckled and reached for a menu for the local Chinese that had been posted to his door at some point. They both scanned over what they wanted and the chimera phoned them up to order. Theo leaned back on the side of the couch, pulling Liam back so his back was pressed to the chimera's chest and they settled in as they waited.

"I can't wait to eat." Liam complained hungrily as he snuggled back against the older boy and Theo carefully squeezed his arms around him in response.

"Quit whining, it'll be here soon." Theo snarked fondly, nosing at the boy's hair and Liam slumped in his grip.

"But I'm hungry." He groaned in response but he was smirking.

"If you don't stop I'm gonna call them back up and tell them not to bother." The chimera threatened lightly and Liam turned in his arms to look at him with narrowed eyes.

"If you do that you're sleeping on the couch tonight." Liam warned and Theo scoffed.

"This is my apartment." He sassed with a smirk.

"Don't care; you'll be on the couch." Liam remarked leaning up to kiss the other boy with a smile.

Theo was about to retort when he heard a car pull up. "I think it's here, you happy now?" He eased himself off the couch when his door knocked and Liam sat up excitedly.

"Extremely." He said cheerfully as he handed Theo the money and the Chimera answered the door to the delivery driver.

Theo set the food on the counter as he went to set out some plates and cutlery. Putting their food onto the plates before carefully moving over to set them on the coffee table for the both of them to eat.

"Thank you." Liam said gratefully and Theo looked over at the younger boy softly.

"Thank _you_ , you paid for it." He informed the wolf, leaning over to kiss him on the cheek before they tucked in and ate in a comfortable silence.

When they had finished eating, Liam leaned back on the couch; sleepy and content. Theo joining him and leaning his head on the other boy's as his snuggled into the chimera's shoulder.

"Bed?" Liam asked quietly and Theo nodded gently. He stood up sluggishly, pulling the other boy into his arms as he carried him into his room and softly set him down on the bed.

"I'm so tired." Theo groaned, pulling off his shirt and taking off his shoes absently. He pulled off his jeans, leaving him in his boxers as he rummaged around for his pyjama bottoms and he heard the hitched breath from behind him. "Like what you see?" Theo said with a lilt to his voice and smirked.

"Yes." Liam admitted with a blush as he lazily toed off his own shoes and took off the shirt Theo had lent him that morning.

Theo swallowed nervously, pulling on his bottoms before getting under the covers, he helped Liam get under them as well as the other boy was still tired and healing. They hadn't had the conversation yet.

 _What are we?_

 _Are we something? Or..._

Nothing really official apart from admitting that they loved each other had happened yet and Theo _wanted_ something official between them. Liam turned to look at him, his hand rested under his head as he leaned in to kiss Theo softly.

"I love you." He told the chimera simply.

"I love you too." The older boy stroked the younger boy's face tenderly and pulled the younger boy closer towards him. "You scared the shit out of me today and I wasn't sure what I was going to do if I had lost you." He admitted to the boy, kissing the boy firmly and lightly pulling back to kiss along the werewolf's jaw.

As much as either boy would have loved to take things further, both were still exhausted and healing. Theo settled for burying his face in the werewolf's throat and Liam moved to lie on his back as his shoulder and chest were still healing.

"I want to be with you." Liam murmured sleepily and Theo smiled affectionately as he linked the fingers together softly.

"You have me." The chimera replied. "There's no one else."

"Good, I don't want to be with anyone else." The wolf mumbled in response and pulled the chimera closer.

"Me too." Theo replied with a small grin.

Liam didn't reply, already drifted off into sleep and Theo couldn't believe his luck.

How did someone as good and as amazing as Liam Dunbar fall for him? What had he done to deserve it? He had worked hard since he came back from hell to prove himself to Liam and the pack. He loved the boy in front of him so much and he didn't think he deserved to be with him after all he'd done but he wasn't going to waste the opportunity he had been given.

After all, it was Liam that told him that running wouldn't solve anything.

And he was inclined to believe him.

A/N So I'm not entirely happy with this but I might add a little chapter 3 ;) I'm just super tired and I've been working every day this week. Hope you enjoyed and I'll be fixing any mistakes when I can :3


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